This month, Inforce announced a Linux build for the Micro SOM based development kit, Inforce 6601, and now we are providing a similar build for the single board computer based on Snapdragon 820, Inforce 6640. This beta release version 0.4 supports Debian Stretch and provides a desktop environment GUI using LXQt. This release has support for some exclusive features on Linux like MIPI-CSI preview stream, improved thermal performance, hardware accelerated H265 encode/decode, 4K HDMI output with audio coupled with a lot of other standard features. Continue reading Download Linux for your Inforce 6640 SBC→

Can you believe we’re already into the 2H of 2016?! Hope our US readers have had a great 4th of July weekend, while everyone out there is also enjoying the full tilt of summer. Welcome to Inforce Computing’s July 2016 Newsletter! In this issue of Inforce Insights, we’d like to share a couple of technical notes [thermal management methods for Inforce’s SBCs & SOMs and running Debian Linux on the Inforce 6309 Micro SBC platform], an article on emerging IoT solutions in the burgeoning asset tracking space, and an interesting customer case study on video collaboration (scroll down). In the June newsletter, we shared the news about NASA’s Astrobee embedding two of Inforce’s compute platforms in their next-gen free-flying robot—did we also mention that the Inforce 6501 Micro SOM beat five other vendor products in a bakeoff? If you missed that part, you can read the benchmarking study here and find out why.

Have a great rest of the summer. Stay safe, cool, and hydrated, and please do share your stories of building great embedded IoT products with us at marketing@inforcecomputing.com!

Welcome to Inforce Computing’s June 2016 Newsletter! In this issue of Inforce Insights, we’d like to share a couple of useful technical application notes and two exciting customer case studies (scroll down). What does enabling 3D printing, computer vision, video analytics, and space-bound free-flying robots have in common? All of these are powered by advanced Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ processor-based Inforce Computing platforms [SOMs and SBCs]. Moreover, Inforce’s value added software and hardware design assistance services have complemented and accelerated product development in these cases.

Software and Product Updates

We’re close to having an upstream kernel Linux BSP release (Linaro 15.10 version) available for the Inforce 6410Plus SBC. Stay tuned for download instructions and release notes for the latest BSP. Once available, please log on to Inforce’s TechWeb and look for the product specific menu under the software tab.

For those that have been eagerly waiting for the Inforce 6601™ Micro SOM, we will be taking pre-orders soon. We thank you for your interest in the latest Inforce 6601 Micro SOM and your patience is much appreciated as we ramp up our manufacturing. In the next few weeks you’ll also be able to read about and download more technical details of the affordable and new Inforce 6301 Micro SOM powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor.

We’d love to hear your feedback about Inforce’s newsletters as well as your stories on building exciting embedded products based on Inforce’s compute platforms. We’re more than glad to share your success story in these columns, so don’t hesitate to write to us at marketing@inforcecomputing.com.

Pyramics, Inforce Computing, Fraunhofer IIS, and Basler come together to help implement a state-of-the-art edge-compute IoT system for a retail video analytics application.

The digital transformations taking shape today in several industries will bring extremely profound changes to the way we will live our lives or how companies operate. The heady mix of people, less-expensive sensors, actuators, compute, connectivity, and big-data analytics has indeed made internet-of-things (IoT) or internet-of-everything (IoE) a big living reality. While one might debate the cost of value propositions these transformations bring to end-users at large and who will pay for it, one can’t help but recognize that the benefits are starting to look pervasive.

Hope all of you have had a great start to 2016 after a much needed Christmas and New Year’s break. If you will be at CES 2016 this week (January 6-9) in Las Vegas, please do stop by the following Qualcomm® booths to take a look at Inforce Computing’s exciting Snapdragon™ processor-based compute platforms in the form of SBCs, SoMs, and development kits.

Inforce Computing®, Inc., a leading provider of modular embedded computing platforms, today introduced the new product-ready Inforce 6401™ Micro SOM featuring the ARM®v7 ISA compatible Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 600 processor (APQ 8064T SoC). The Snapdragon 600 processor is a product of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated. Targeting embedded system applications that require HD video and graphics processing, ultra-low power consumption and high-performance, the Inforce 6401 is designed to make the well-proven and quad-core processing power of the Snapdragon 600 mobile platform easily accessible for a variety of space, weight and power (SWaP) constrained industrial IoE and consumer devices.

The plug-and-play Inforce 6401 Micro SOM brings forth the Snapdragon 600 processor’s rich features with support for a full set of peripheral devices to deliver a continued high standard of benefits for embedded systems developers:

Excellent Android function and peripheral support with a KitKat 4.4.2 BSP and Linux based on Ubuntu 14.10 BSP that includes drivers for Wi-Fi, BT 4.0, GPS and video acceleration up to 1080p60 resolution, three cameras up to 20MP, and highly flexible power management.

Strong support for custom carrier board design with a design assistance services package that includes reference schematics and access to a dedicated customer support engineer

Take advantage of the SDKs of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and its subsidiaries, such as the FastCV™ computer vision SDK, the Qualcomm® Multicore Asynchronous Runtime Environment (MARE) SDK, the Qualcomm® Vuforia™ mobile vision platform, and Qualcomm Hexagon SDK, to fast-track your embedded designs

Enable interoperable connectivity and communication across different transports, platforms and operating systems among devices with the use of AllJoyn®, a collaborative open-source software framework from the AllSeen Alliance. SDK available from allseenalliance.org

“Inforce pioneered the first commercial Micro SOMs based on the Qualcomm Snapdragon processors. Our customers are engineering some of the most challenging embedded designs for the IoE. The Inforce 6401 Micro SOM fits their stringent requirements in a configuration that eases the burden of designing the most difficult part of an IoE embedded system,” said Jagat Acharya, CEO of Inforce Computing, Inc. “The Inforce 6401 Micro SOM gives system designers the maximum amount of flexibility and control over their projects by providing the core Snapdragon 600 processor functionality while exposing a maximum level of system I/O for customer designed carrier cards. Inforce 6401 Micro SOM also provides embedded designers the right path to seamless future upgrades, ensuring their products don’t get obsoleted and are competitive in the marketplace.”

A full-fledged carrier board, which comprehensively expands the I/O and connectivity

A starter kit with power supply, micro-USB cable, and an acrylic base

The Inforce 6401 Micro SOM is available now and can be ordered online here. For more information on lead times and volume pricing, please contact sales@inforcecomputing.com.

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About Inforce Computing

Inforce Computing is at the bleeding edge of modern embedded computing design. At Inforce, we are inspired by the inflection point in mobile and wireless technologies that are spawning innovative applications and services. Inforce is a leading developer of high-performance Android and Ubuntu Linux OS based product-ready hardware compute platforms for real life applications. Enhanced by working with Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, Inforce designs and manufactures powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon processor-based system-on-modules (SOM) and single-board-computers (SBC) in ultra-low power and tiny form factors. Inforce Computing supplies high performance processing, networking, and embedded hardware platforms based on widely-used open standards for a variety of applications. More information can be found at www.inforcecomputing.com.

Qualcomm, Snapdragon, Adreno, Hexagon and Vuforia are trademarks of Qualcomm Incorporated, registered in the United States and other countries. Krait and FastCV are trademarks of Qualcomm Incorporated. Qualcomm Krait, Qualcomm Adreno, Qualcomm Hexagon and Qualcomm Multicore Asynchronous Runtime Environment are products of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. Qualcomm Vuforia is a product of Qualcomm Connected Experiences, Inc. AllJoyn is a registered trademark of AllSeen Alliance, Inc. Other product and brand names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

We formally launched the much anticipated and brand new Inforce 6501™ Micro System-on-module (SOM) this week. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that this is a watershed moment for all of us at Inforce. We strongly believe that the Inforce 6501 Micro SOM will enable the design of sophisticated embedded products with capabilities and tiny form factors unheard of before. Early adopters of the Inforce 6501 Micro SOM are working on some of the most coolest embedded products yet to come. The Inforce 6501 Micro SOM is powered by the Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 805 processor (APQ8084 SoC), the latest shipping mobile platform technology available for embedded designs. So, to share my excitement about the new micro SOM, I’d like to list a few stand-out features:

The Inforce 6501 Micro SOM is the world’s tiniest module based on the Snapdragon 805 processor. With a form factor of just 28mm X 50mm (and a low profile of only 6mm with the connectors), and a weight of under 0.3 oz. (8 g), this is as miniature in size as it gets. Now think of the end-use applications that are space constrained, yet scream for bleeding edge compute horsepower and are battery powered.

Inforce has solved the complexity of designing and manufacturing a Micro SOM of this tiny proportion. The state-of-the-art design comes standard with 2GB POP LPDDR3 RAM and 4GB eMMC memory. It is also ROHS and WEE compliant.

On-board dual-band WiFi + BT + GPS for all the connectivity you want (GbE is enabled on the carrier card)

With the most difficult part of an embedded design (the compute module) taken out of the equation, designers now can focus on their core-competencies, rapidly prototype, and get their product to market faster.

Two 100-pin connectors enable designers access a comprehensive set of I/Os from the Snapdragon 805 processor. To jumpstart your design, you may purchase the Inforce 6501 Development Kit, which includes the Micro-SOM, a sensor board, a carrier card, and a starter kit.

Full featured Android KitKat 4.4 BSP and device driver support. Linaro Ubuntu Linux BSP is in the works and will be available in May this year.

If you are designing the next great head-mounted display for an industrial hands-free computing application that requires support for multiple cameras, displays, and excellent image signal processors, the Inforce 6501 Micro SOM could be a great fit.

Thanks to robust PCIe support, one is able to do more with the Inforce 6501 Micro SOM. With its 4K HD video capabilities, next-generation videoconferencing products with multiple HDMI inputs and outputs will be well differentiated and more competitive in the marketplace.

Similarly, advances in Ultrasound, Arthroscopic, and Endoscopic medical imaging are possible, thanks to the high-end video and graphics capabilities of the Inforce 6501 Micro SOM. The miniaturization of the compute module will help designers integrate the latest mobile applications processors into connected portable medical imaging instruments, improving image resolution significantly and enabling faster time to results.

This is an ideal form factor many embedded designers have been looking for—you may fit the Inforce 6501 Micro SOM into your system and not worry about the CPU/GPU/DSP intensive algorithms that can run on it. It’s not a trade-off between compute power and size—with the Inforce 6501 Micro SOM, you get the best of the both worlds. In addition, with excellent access to I/Os from the Snapdragon 805 processor, there’s great flexibility in custom designing carrier boards to suit specific peripheral device needs. If you are designing the next industrial drone/UAV with autonomous navigation and obstacle avoidance, check out the Inforce 6501 Micro SOM.

Typically designing the compute module is the most complex and time consuming part of building an embedded system—leave that to the readily available Inforce 6501 Micro SOM. The Inforce 6501 Micro SOM will save several months of design time, accelerate your time-to-market, and reduce overall design costs.